Brad McCannell - Background & Credentials

Mr. McCannell's expertise in the area of disability comes from both personal experience and practical knowledge. In 1990, he formed Canadian Barrier Free Design Inc. (CBFD) - created to fill the gap between the application of the building code and the real needs of the community of persons with disabilities. Brad has extensive experience in developing the entire accessible environment including retrofitting existing facilities, new construction planning, employee training as well as developing tools for human resource management as it relates to people with disabilities. McCannell’s is familiar with national and provincial building codes, as well as being well versed in the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA).

He is the Access Consultant on several large British Columbia projects including the 2010 Winter & Paralympic Games, the Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion Project, the re-development of the Vancouver International Airport, and the Skytrain rapid transit system. He was also the overall Project Manager of INDEPENDENCE 92, the largest International Congress and Exposition on disabilities held at that time. The Province of British Columbia, YVRAA, the Vancouver TAXI Host program, and numerous other organizations have all chosen CBFD’s disability awareness training programs as their training of choice.

Current Board Memberships:

Previous Board Memberships:

McCannell is a recipient of the Canadian Paraplegic Association’s AWARD OF DISTINCTION for his monthly column focusing on the issues of people with disabilities that appeared in the Vancouver Province newspaper and the Rick Hansen Accessibility Award for leadership in creating accessible environments.

Brad became a C6-7 quadriplegic after a car accident in 1980 at age 27. He uses a wheelchair and a service dog on a daily basis.

As well as providing technical advice, Brad has extensive experience representing clients at presentations, public displays and media events that furnish promotional opportunities for any given project. He has been the featured speaker at several conferences to discuss access issues including the Airports Council International Conference in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia, the University of Puget Sound Diversity Conference, the Assistance Dogs International Annual Convention and as a featured subject on the CBC national program ‘Witness’.

Clients of Brad / Canadian Barrier Free Design Inc. include:

Through a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Barrier Free Design Inc. a one-hour documentary featuring people with disabilities was recently completed. “Ability Profiles”, written and produced by McCannell, and airs regularly across Canada on educational television outlets.